In heavy industries, like e.g. construction and mining, loads of gravel, rocks and stone need to be transported or moved. This is done by haulers which are loaded by an excavator or loader. The rocks and stones are often heavy and they may be pointy. They may damage or miss shape the hauler bucket. Also lighter gravel exposes the structure to wear, particularly when it is unloaded. In this case the bucket is exposed to a sliding wear, which it also needs to resist. Therefore it is important both to protect the hauler bucket and to protect the hauler operator from noise and impacts. Thus, it is necessary to provide an energy and noise absorbing lining in the hauler bucket.
For many years, rubber linings provided with a backing plate of metal have been used in applications with high abrasion and noise. However, these lining systems are often very heavy, due to the metal, and sometimes difficult to attach to an underlying structure. One example of such a liner is a wear plate called “Trellex PP” described in the Handbook “Wear lining and sheeting” version 1.2 issued by the Swedish company Metso Mineral (Sweden AB). This wear plate comprises a wear rubber attached to a bottom mounting plate of steel. The “Trellex PP” liner exhibits all the above mentioned drawbacks, since it is high-weight and difficult to mount to the underlying structure. Further, it is primary a wear plate and therefore it does not have sufficient energy absorption properties for certain applications. For instance, this kind of wear plate can be unsuitable in environments where it is desired to reduce vibrations or noise as well. The mounting plate of steel makes the individual elements difficult to work and it is hard to adjust the shape of the wear plate to fit a certain area. The heavy metal also requires heavy lifting equipment to handle the wear plates.
Due to the above mentioned drawbacks, it has oftentimes not been possible to assemble the known lining systems on a factory assembly line which makes existing lining systems expensive.
A further known type of lining system is disclosed in US2008/0317992A1 which is made up of polyurethane or rubber plates. A problem with these liner elements is the difficulties in attaching it to a foundation.
Another lining system is disclosed in WO2006/132582A1 which has wear-resistant members of a ceramic material embedded in a rubber material. A ceramic wear material may be advantageous for protecting against sliding wear, but it is brittle and may crack when the lining is exposed to hard impacts. Also, both the above mentioned lining systems need to be custom made for each truck, hauler or other equipment or area to be protected and may thus not be assembled on a factory line. This is both expensive and inflexible.
A known material having a layered structure is disclosed in EP0142716A2. This sandwich material comprises at least three layers with different hardness. In this document it is however not disclosed how the sandwich material is supposed to be used. For instance, it is not described how to attach the sandwich material to an underlying structure.
From the above it is understood that there is room for improvements.